Chapter 197 - 124: Middle Stage
Only when Chen Qing returned to the Fishery did the tension finally leave him.
The people at the Fishery crowded around him to report on what had happened in his absence.
"Steward, you’re finally back!"
Old Zhao wrung his hands. "We were all on pins and needles while you were gone, Steward. We were afraid some trouble from Nine Waves Island would spill over to us. Thank goodness, everything was peaceful."
Sun Xiaomiao chimed in, "The winter hunt is over, Steward! It was a great success! Thanks to you, the ice was thick this year, and the Treasure Fish were large. The harvest was twenty percent greater than previous years! All the Treasure Fish, Clam Pearls, and Jade Lotus Buds have been sorted and stored according to regulations. The accounts are all in order, just waiting for your review."
He handed over a thick ledger.
Wang Shuosheng, Jiang Feng, Lin Tao, and the others also added details about the Fishery’s daily patrols and maintenance. Everything was in order, with no Exotic Beast incursions or unusual incidents.
Chen Qing listened carefully as he leafed through the ledger.
He was quite pleased to see that everyone had kept the place running smoothly in his absence and that the winter hunt had been so fruitful.
"You’ve all worked hard!"
Chen Qing closed the ledger and looked at the crowd. "All of you have done a great service by keeping the Fishery stable and successfully completing the winter hunt. Old Zhao, as is tradition, take thirty percent of the extra profits from the winter hunt and distribute it among everyone. Sun Xiaomiao, your accounting was clear and precise. You are rewarded with fifty taels of silver. Everyone else will receive twenty taels and three days of rotating leave!"
"Thank you for your grace, Steward!"
Hearing this, their faces broke into surprised smiles. They accepted in unison, the worry and fatigue of the past days vanishing in an instant.
The atmosphere at the Fishery instantly became lively.
After everyone had collected their rewards and dispersed in high spirits, tranquility returned to the small courtyard.
Just as Chen Qing was about to return to his room, he heard footsteps outside the courtyard.
The visitor was Wu Yuanhua.
His face wore a somewhat melancholic expression.
He walked into the courtyard and cupped his fist to Chen Qing. "Brother Chen."
Chen Qing stood and gestured for him to sit, then instructed Liu He to pour a cup of hot tea. "Junior Brother Wu, your injuries haven’t healed yet. What brings you here? Is something the matter?"
Wu Yuanhua cupped the warm teacup in both hands. After a moment of silence, he spoke in a low voice, "Brother Chen, Senior Brother Xiao... and Senior Sister Lin... they’re all gone, aren’t they?"
Chen Qing sighed inwardly and nodded. "Yes. The Sect has confirmed it. Senior Brother Xiao fell to the vicious hand of the Demon Sect’s Zuo Feng, and Senior Sister Lin... didn’t make it either."
An almost imperceptible tremor ran through Wu Yuanhua’s body.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, the rims of his eyes were red.
"Senior Brother Xiao... he saved my life."
Wu Yuanhua sighed. "That time, deep in Qianchuan Marsh... if Senior Brother Xiao hadn’t arrived in time... I would have died long ago. He was always sincere and kind to his fellow disciples. And Senior Sister Lin... she..."
He seemed unable to continue, his voice choked with emotion.
It was truly painful. The senior brother and sister he had just been eating and chatting with were now separated from him by the veil of death in the blink of an eye.
Seeing this, Chen Qing patted Wu Yuanhua’s shoulder and said, "The dead are gone. You have my condolences."
After a long while, Wu Yuanhua finally spoke again, his voice filled with an inexpressible bitterness and confusion:
"But... Brother Chen!"
Wu Yuanhua’s voice was thick with indignation. "Song Ming came back! Not only did that bastard come back alive, I heard he made a fortune on the island! He earned more than we would working ourselves to death at the Fishery for years! What kind of person is Song Ming? He only looks out for himself, a schemer through and through! He runs faster than anyone at the first sign of trouble! At the critical moment..."
He snapped his head up and stared right at Chen Qing. "Brother Chen! Tell me, why is that? Why is it that you risk your life, work so hard, and end up with next to nothing, while that Song Ming gets to make a fortune?!"
Wu Yuanhua’s tone was filled with frustration and indignation on Chen Qing’s behalf.
Chen Qing was silent for a moment before saying lightly, "Perhaps... Brother Song just has better luck."
’He probably hasn’t seen the Treasure Ship moored in the water, or he wouldn’t be thinking this way.’
"Sigh..." Wu Yuanhua let out a heavy sigh, his voice full of dejection and resentment. "Could it be that this world... really is a place where good people die young and scourges live for a thousand years?!"
Chen Qing was speechless.
Wu Yuanhua continued to vent his frustrations for a long time before finally leaving.
Watching Wu Yuanhua’s retreating back, Chen Qing thought of Xiao Ruize and Lin Wei’s tragic deaths, and of the moment Zuo Feng killed Liu Han.
’In this world, I just have to focus on getting stronger.’
’A genius!?’
’What’s a genius who hasn’t had the chance to mature!?’
「Two days later.」
Nanzhe No. 7 Fishery was covered in a thick blanket of white, utterly serene.
Chen Qing sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion in the center of his small cabin, the latest issue of the *Jianghu Anecdotes* open in his hands.
The front page was still covering the aftermath of the Nine Waves Island incident: "Profound Armor and Five Platforms Join Forces to Purge Nine Waves Island! The Zheng Family Annihilated, Remnants Flee!"
A secondary article listed some of the slain bandit leaders and core members of the Zheng Family. The names of Zheng Yuankui, as well as the first and second-in-command of Nine Waves Island, were prominently featured.
Only the names of Zheng Hui and some of the veteran elders and Tributors were marked as "Fugitive, Wanted."
As for the deaths of Xiao Ruize, Lin Wei, and the others, there were only a few brief words: Several elite disciples of the Wutai Sect’s Li Fire Institute were unfortunately ambushed by the Demon Sect expert Zuo Feng and died heroically for their cause.
The brief mention was glossed over, yet it reeked of heavy bloodshed.
"Liu Family’s Young Master, Liu Han, has gone missing in the waters of Nine Waves Island. The Liu Family is conducting an all-out search."
This piece of news also caused quite a stir. After all, Liu Han was not only the Young Master of the Liu Family but also one of the Five Heroes and Seven Talents. Amidst the family’s internal power struggles, he was a genius who had been groomed since childhood to be the next Patriarch.
How could his disappearance now not cause waves?
This was especially significant because the Liu Family was currently the sole top-tier family in Yunlin Prefecture. A single move could affect the whole.
Chen Qing’s gaze swept over the small newspaper, his heart as calm as still water.
He closed the *Anecdotes* and set it aside.
’The Yunlin Sub-Pavilion still hasn’t shown its hand. I wonder how long this peace will last.’
’I should enter seclusion and break through to the Mid-stage Embracing Pill Power first,’ Chen Qing mused.
His gaze fell upon the neatly stacked chests of valuables in the corner of the room.
The spoils from the Nine Waves Island trip, plus the toll money from Liu Han and the subsequent extortion, amounted to an astonishing fortune. Though he hadn’t counted it precisely, it was definitely enough to support his Cultivation needs for a long time to come.
Chen Qing summoned Old Zhao, Sun Xiaomiao, and the others and gave them simple instructions: "Handle the Fishery’s affairs as usual. Do not disturb me unless it is an urgent matter. I am entering seclusion for a period of time."
"Yes, Steward!"
They all replied in unison.
Chen Qing lit a stick of incense for Concentrating and Calming the Mind. A wisp of blue smoke curled upwards, making the room feel even more tranquil.
He settled into a cross-legged position, his Heart and Spirit sinking into his Dantian Sea of Qi.
Vast Cyan Wood True Qi surged within his Dantian, like a vibrant, cyan river.
With a single thought, the circulation speed of his True Qi suddenly increased. Countless streams of Cyan Wood True Qi poured into his body through the pores of his skin, merging with the river in his Sea of Qi.
The sun rose and the moon set. Snow melted and fell anew. A month and a half passed in silence.
Inside the cabin, Chen Qing was like a statue, his breathing long and steady, his vitality contained within.
The Cyan Wood True Qi in his body had grown to the point of nearly overflowing. It roared through his twelve Main Meridians, crashing against the barrier of the fourth meridian.
BOOM—!
It was as if a clap of thunder exploded in his mind!
The Cyan Wood True Qi, accumulated to its absolute peak, surged toward the barrier of the fourth Main Meridian under the full force of Chen Qing’s Intention!
CRACK!
The fourth Main Meridian—the Foot Jueyin Liver Meridian—was instantly cleared!
In that instant, an unprecedented feeling of openness swept through his entire body!
The four Main Meridians were now connected end to end, forming a perfect minor cycle!
[Heaven Rewards Diligence, Success is Inevitable]
[Cyan Wood Eternal Spring Technique Third Layer (1/3000)]
The Dantian Sea of Qi churned violently!
The Cyan Wood True Qi, which had already been close to saturation, instantly surged as if a brand-new spring had been poured into it the moment he broke through to the Third Layer!
Its quality and quantity took a simultaneous leap forward!
The newborn Third-Layer Cyan Wood True Qi was deeper in color, and the Vitality Power it contained was purer and vaster.
It was like a raging, cyan torrent, circulating madly through the newly formed four-meridian minor cycle. Each circulation brought further refinement and growth to his True Qi.
Mid-stage Embracing Pill Power—it was a natural breakthrough!
Chen Qing slowly opened his eyes.